Note: Well... I've heard that we're allowed to post wotmaniac stories on this board, so... yeah. I'm doing just that.

Other Notes: This particular chapter containsimplied graphic violence, and mature-ish situations.
Yes, Edge agreed to his part. If anyone else wants a similar, applications can be sent to my NB.
No, the other part hasn't been cast because I have yet to get a hold of the person, so applications for this part can be sent to my NB.
And, now, here we go...

Sunset on the Mind - Part 1

Springtime afternoon sunlight filtered through the screen door, casting a dark light onto golden_lily’s leg as she danced by. She tidied her place while she danced, sang while she tidied. Evanescence blared from her stereo, and she used her duster like a microphone before she could stop herself.

“Bring me to liiiiiife,” Lily sang, holding the note as well as even her sister could have.

The door opened.

“Baby, you’re late,” she said to Edge as she turned around. “I was beginning to think—.”

* * *

Lily’s ear-piercing shriek could be heard outside. Globug0822 had been walking by, hoping to run into Edge—or maybe even farmboy, or Nebhead; she’d been having a bad day, and needed to talk to one of her guys. A scream like that, coming from Lily? Not something very common, especially when it could be heard over her music.

Glo rushed in through the front door, and quickly turned off the blaring stereo. Immediately, she heard the sound of crying. Following the sniffles, Glo walked into the kitchen to find Lily hunched over the body of Edge. Before she even knew it, her eyes were spilling tears; she was on her knees, sobbing into her hands, almost at Edge’s feet, staring through the salty water in her eyes at the knife jutting out of him.

* * *

All of wotmania was in a daze. They’d never experienced murder before. The wotmania Newsletter was released weeks early, and new papers opened up—mostly because of conspiracy theorists who thought it was a political assassination or some such.

Farmboy stared ahead with sightless eyes, a heavy rain matting his hair and running down his face. One of four pallbearers—the others being MC1745, grogg, and the reclusive warder-brother Jolly Roger—farmboy walked with the precision of one carefully planting his steps on uneven ground without seeing more than the mist the rain seemed to be.

Ahead was the grave, surrounded by people. Lily—poor Lily!—and globug stood on opposite sides. Glo looked like she’d cried all she could, her face bleak and her eyes red, while Lily burst into tears again when she saw the coffin. Ironclad held an umbrella over he and Zyallira Sedai’s heads, his other arm around her shoulder. Lily’s sisters—Mat Girl and SnoopyGal—were just arriving with IAmFarDareisMai, walking around to her side with an extra umbrella just for her. Gwenhwyvar stood off to one side of the widow, looking like she’d need grogg by her side soon. Alric seVinta and Trigger stood with Danae alThor, patternweaver, SynEve, M & M Maddy, and Matfriend, doing their best to comfort more than twice their number. Manusho was just walking over to glo—though for what reason, farmboy didn’t know. Wotmaina was there too, the founder of the city of the same name.

When Mat Girl came over to farmboy—she always seemed to know how he was feeling, and right then he needed comfort—he stopped paying attention to everything else. Even to the words she spoke. All he did was feel her warm breath on his neck as she said them. Vaguely, before the tears started coming, he noticed Alric seVinta walk off a ways and start talking to someone farmboy couldn’t see.

And soon, it was over. The man Alric had been speaking to came towards them.

“Anne,” TasmasterJack said, nodding at her. “I need to speak with Brad alone, dear. Is that alright?”

“Yeah, Jack. I need to go see how Lily’s doing anyway. Hun,” she said to farmboy, “I’ll see you in the morning, OK? I’m going to be keeping Lily company tonight.”

“Okay, honey,” farmboy said, giving her a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Once Mat Girl had walked out of earshot, Jack spoke again. “You going to be alright?”

“Yeah,” farmboy replied, wiping his nose with the back of his hand, and then snorting. “I’ll be fine in a bit.”

“Good. Because we need to talk to Lily soon.”

“What?” farmboy asked angrily. “She just lost her husband! Give her some time to heal, at least!”

“You’re a WSS agent, aren't you? And I’m your commanding officer. You do what you’re told, when you’re told to do it. Time to heal means time to forget. We need every bit of evidence we can get, and she knows more than nothing.”

Farmboy visibly fought with himself, but there was nothing he could do. Except punch Jack in the nose. “Fine. But we’ve got to be subtle. I don’t want to see her cry again.”

“Deal,” Jack said. As farmboy started to walk off, he added, “We’ll need Gloria too.”

* * *

“That’s all I can remember! That’s it! Brad, can I go home yet?”

“I’m sorry, Lily, but no,” Catriona Sedai said sympathetically. “There has to be something more. Did he say anything to you before… it happened?”

“No, he just…” Tears were welling up in Lily’s eyes. She looked up into Catriona’s eyes, glaring through her sorrow. “He said he loved me, and…”

“What, Lily? What did he say?”

She took a deep breath, and wiped her eyes. “1745. He said 1745.”

“1745?” Cat asked. “What?”

“MatCauthon, or…” Farmboy scowled and hit the back of his head against the wall. “Either one of them killed him, or one of them is next. And I doubt Chris or Anne would kill anyone, let alone Edge.”

“That’s why I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want to… I didn’t want you to hurt more too.”

“Wait. Anne? What does 1745 have to do with Mat Girl?”

“Mail. She used to… We need to put them both into protective custody.”

“You’re not on the case, farmboy,” Cat reminded. “But we probably should. I’ll talk to MGB. Take her home, farmboy.”

“What about globug?”

“I’ll give you a call when they’re done questioning her. Until then, there’s nothing I can do. You should both get some rest.”

Cat smiled, and walked them both to the entrance—not that farmboy didn’t know how to get there, even with his poor sense of direction—being positive, and sweet, and nice. Being herself. Something very few did at a time like theirs; some couldn’t even keep to a false pretence of sympathy.

The dusk was already dark, and clouds covered the sky—though it had, thankfully, stopped raining while they were inside—but for the yellow and red, pink and purple glow of the sun setting. Farmboy and Lily walked across a town suddenly afraid of itself.


My brain has been swiss cheesed like Scott Bakula's on Quantum Leap